Cottage Food Law questions and concerns. - Page 5

Costumeczar.....Thank you so much for understanding how I felt when I posted my question. My main source of income is wedding cakes and not every year is a big as others. I more than understand what you are saying. Several of the venues in my area require permits, licenses and liability insurance. The weddings that are booked at those venues are usually larger and more profitable. I have become a preferred cake vendor of several of these venues. No, just because there are more cake bakers that isn't going to spur more people to hop up and decide to get married. I don't think having a larger number of bakers to choose from is what they've been waiting to gt engaged.

This is something that I saw happen to another industry. I have several professional photographer friends that were established long before digital photography was ever heard of. After the price of digital cameras dropped and people pick up one everywhere, you couldn't sling a dead cat without hitting a "photographer." This really hit professional studio owning photographers hard, one guy had to lay off his own son. Another photographer got a call from a guy that went like this "I picked up a camera at Best Buy yesterday and I'm shooting a wedding next week, can you give me some pointers?"

I just had to wonder.

I knew I couldn't be the only one with concerns. But for a few post there I was afraid I was gonna be lynched.

I didn't know much about the CFL and since Alabama hadn't passed one yet I really wasn't too bothered. So when it came up I wanted to know how it would effect me.

I'm not a storefront so there is nothing going out the door every minute of the day for me. Birthday cakes aren't money makers for me, since folks want Buddy the Cake Boss cakes at Wal-Mart prices. I focus mainly on wedding cakes. But to my advantage, I have the credentials to get in preferred venues that home bakers didn't. So with CFL all that would change. In addition to that CFL bakers would be able to advertise, bringing those who had baked "in the shadows" for the years into the mainstream. These are real financial concerns to me.

To address the repeated statements of restrictions. If no one is enforcing them, then there really are none. Yes everything is labeled, okay got that. Financial caps, who is in charge of that? Do folks stop baking when they reach that magic number? What about orders on the books passed that point, do they get baked? I'm just curious.

Now I apologize in advance for anyone one this offends but I'm throwing out here. READ CAREFULLY....This is not a generalization of home bakers, I'm speaking of folks I know personally. I know for an actual fact that there are some home bakers that have always made cream cheese and meringue icings, used fillings that need refrigeration, made tons of cheesecakes. So if that is something that they did with success as illegal home bakers, who is gonna know if they continue making and selling these products? If they don't advertise it but they offer it in a consultation with a customer, who's gonna know? Some people have operated illegally for years and they didn't have a problem operating illegally. So the states stamping legal on it may not change some folks way of doing. That is also concerning.

Once upon a time I was a hobby baker with a dream, so not only do I understand you... I've been you. I don't begrudge you anything. I don't think many of you understand me. Many have considered me whining, complaining, jealous, petty, short sided or just plain scared. I'm not, I don't feel threatened by you. I'm just not so sure that this is an entirely a level playing field that's all.

ChristineCMC....I have invested 23 years in cakes, 14 of which have been in my own legal shop. Yes I had my first years as I hobby baker then several years in a borrowed kitchen.

What most bakers who do good work will find out once they start selling cakes they will have a following. It's sort of an avalanche effect. The friends of friends, the relatives and coworkers of friends, the relatives and friends of the coworkers of friends friends and so on. That will be the birth of a business. And soon there is not enough of you to go around and life is good and the money don't hurt either. Until one day you wake up and instead of being the only baker on your street you are one of six bakers on your street. I know after the cake shows on t.v. became popular EVERYBODY was a cake decorator. Like somebody said, just because supply of bakers has increased, supply of customers may not.

One thing I know for certain is brides and their mothers are less of a PITA than the "birthday mother" who wants a 4 tier cake to serve 20 for $25. For all the hassle and time of a bunch of fondant critters, do dads and what nots on a $75 birthday cake, I can make a couple 200 serving wedding cakes for well over a grand. That is a lot of beach time.

See, I'm giving everybody free business advice.

Jason....I wish there was some way to show you the cake pictures and ideas I get emails on every day of the week. Here is one example of what I'm talking about. I got an email from a lady wanting a 3D gumball cake. I priced the cake at $250. The lady didn't want to pay that for the cake and I suggested she find a simpler design or another decorator. Oh no she wants that cake and me to do it. So I again tell her that will be $250. She again tells me she doesn't want to pay that much, she has spent so much on the party already. This goes on for many emails. Then finally she realized she wasn't going to be able to talk me into doing that cake for any less she wanted to know what I will do for $50. She got a sheet cake with a fondant cutout of gumball machine.

Jason that is just a drop in the bucket of stories I could tell you about birthday cakes. They don't want simple cakes at reasonable prices they want elaborate cakes at Wal-Mart prices and don't understand why they can't have it. So since they can't get a 4 tier cake to serve 20 people with fondant critters, do dads and what not's for $25 they go elsewhere. Where I live isn't a large metropolitan area. Nobody around here and nearby is willing to pay hundreds of dollars on a birthday cake, because folks have birthday's every year. BUT brides understand before they walk in the door, that a wedding cake will be expensive.

The vast majority of the population have no idea what goes into making a cake and how much that they cost. I price cakes accordingly. People see elaborate cakes on t.v. made in 30 minutes and think well there can't be that much to it, so it's bound to be cheap.

I've had customers over the years who ordered all their kids birthday cakes from me but come wedding time for one of those kids, they go to Wal-Mart or a home baker who charged half or less than me.

I also have this theory...People shouldn't ask for or expect more cake than they are willing to pay for just because they want it.